110 HRES 803 IH: Expressing the sense of the House of U.S. House of Representatives 2007-11-06 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 803 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES November 6, 2007 Ms. DeLauro (for herself, Mr. Doggett, Mr. Hare, Mr. Holt, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Emanuel, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, Mr. Cardoza, Ms. Eshoo, Ms. Sutton, Mr. Courtney, Mrs. Maloney of New York, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. Richardson, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, and Mr. Welch of Vermont) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the House has lost confidence in the performance of Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairwoman Nancy Nord, and urging the President to request her resignation.

Whereas the mission of the Consumer Product Safety Commission is to protect the public against unreasonable risks of injury associated with consumer products; Whereas, since 1974, the first year the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) went into operation, United States imports have quadrupled, and the CPSC is responsible for overseeing more than 15,000 types of products, yet it now operates with approximately 400 staffers, fewer than half the number of staff when the agency was established; Whereas 80 percent of the toys Americans buy are Chinese imports, and in recent months more than 20 million toys manufactured in China were recalled because of lead paint and other hazards; Whereas, instead of prioritizing and addressing serious threats to public health or dealing with the CPSC’s own limitations, Commission Chairwoman Nancy Nord stubbornly pushes back and actively opposes legislation to grant the CPSC much needed authority and resources. Whereas Federal employees in regulatory agencies are generally prohibited from receiving any gift, including payment or reimbursement of travel expenses, from someone who is seeking action from, doing business with, or regulated by that agency, or whose interests may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of an employee’s official duties; Whereas prohibiting gifts to Federal employees is aimed at preventing a government employee from becoming beholden to anyone in the private sector who might affect the independence or judgment of that employee; Whereas Chairwoman Nord and her predecessor, Hal Stratton, took nearly 30 trips at the expense of the toy, appliance, and children’s furniture industries who had interests before the Commission, and the airfares, hotels, and meals of such trips totaled nearly $60,000; Whereas the CPSC made travel bookings before the trips were approved and the CPSC’s ethics official traveled with the chairwoman as a guest of a regulated industry; Whereas Chairwoman Nord was reported to have taken a trip totaling $3,730 to San Francisco in 2005 sponsored by the Toy Industry Foundation, an association that represents the makers of 85 percent of the toys sold in the United States; Whereas Chairwoman Nord was reported to have taken a trip in February 2006, which was paid for by the Toy Industry Association to attend the American International Toy Fair in New York; Whereas, in February, Chairwoman Nord accepted more than $2,000 in travel and accommodations from the Defense Research Institute to attend its meeting in New Orleans on product litigation trends, according to the agency’s internal records; Whereas the CPSC Inspector General Christopher W. Dentel has asserted that he will take steps to see to it that the relevant records detailing travel expenses are secured and an investigation initiated; and Whereas Chairwoman Nord is the wrong person to lead the CPSC as its chief regulator as she has shunned her regulatory responsibilities: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1)has lost confidence in Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairwoman Nancy Nord; and (2)urges the President to request her resignation and to nominate a new candidate to head the Consumer Product Safety Commission.